Friday 27 May 2016 7:40 am

Anglo American’s diamond business De Beers names new chief exec Bruce Cleaver

Anglo American's De Beers said today it had appointed Bruce Cleaver as chief executive from 1 July.

Cleaver will replace Philippe Mellier who decided to step down after five years at the world's biggest diamond producer.

Cleaver had been group director of strategy and business development at Anglo. Prior to this, he'd served as exec director for strategy and commercial relationships at De Beers until last year, and as co-acting chief exec of the Ftse 100-listed miner ahead of Mellier's arrival in 2011.

Mark Cutifani, chief exec of Anglo and chairman of De Beers, said Cleaver's career to-date offers strong continuity at an important stage in the diamond market's recovery. It's suffered amid waning Chinese demand and a global oversupply.

"The structural dynamics of the diamond market continue to improve, led by the strength of consumer demand for diamond jewellery," he said.

Mellier added: "Having steered through some of the diamond industry's toughest times and with the market showing signs of recovery, now is the right time for me to pass the baton to the next generation."

Duncan Wanblad, chief exec of Anglo's base metals business, will also add the strategy and business development portfolio of Anglo to his responsibilities.

"Wanblad is the natural successor to our strategy and business development work, in addition to his existing base metals responsibilities which include copper as one of our major areas of focus," Cutifani added.

Anglo posted a $5.4bn loss for 2015 – the largest in its history – prompting chief executive Mark Cutifani to set out an aggressive restructuring plan to boost its cash flow and cut debt.

The company recently sold a 70 per cent stake in a mine in Queensland, Australia to a consortium led by Taurus Fund Management, an Australian fund manager that specialises in investment products based on the mined commodities industry.